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2021 Artists (by group or surname) L Lickerish Quartet Music Reviews Non-Soundtrack Music Year

The Lickerish Quartet – Threesome, Vol. 2

3 min read

Order this CDThe second EP release from the trio (yes, not an actual quartet) of reunited Jellyfish alumni arrived just in time to give 2021 some good music, proof that surely it would be a better year than the one before it. Well, okay, maybe the jury’s still out on that one, but Threesome, Vol. 2 is some good music.

“Do You Feel Better?” and “Sovereignty Blues” offer a one-two power pop punch that serves as a reminder that not only did everyone in the band previously belong to Jellyfish, but they’ve still got the chops – snappy songwriting with great hooks, off-the-scale musicianship, great vocal harmonies, and production with just the right retro touches when needed. The lyrics of “Sovereignty Blues” seem kind of prescient in terms of recommending a leaner diet of news…or, at the very least, stuff passing itself off as news. It was already a catchy song, but I can totally get behind those lyrics, particularly in this decade.

The real attention-getter of this collection is “The Dream That Took Me Over”, which slides into a slightly more recent sound with touches of early ’80s new wave and a great bass groove throughout. It’s a deliciously relistenable treatment of a well-written, nicely-performed song. (It also got a music video of its own – see below – which seems to be a giveaway that the band also knew this was the best thing on this particular release.) Further visits to this kind of early ’80s sound would be welcome – I’m not suggesting that they try to form a new TV Eyes, but Manning’s involvement with that album proves that he’s really good at hitting that sweet spot.

3 out of 4Just like the first volume, there’s one song on here that doesn’t quite land with me, but even so, there’s stuff I like about “Snollygoster Goon”, from its brief flashes of a “Bohemian Rhapsody”-style wall of vocals, but this song doesn’t get replayed as often as the other three. But three out of four isn’t bad – and I’m sure “Snollygoster Goon” is probably somebody else’s favorite somewhere. Lickerish Quartet’s continued short releases are nice little doses of a band that really gets songcraft and doesn’t think it’s been rendered obsolete by software and trendiness. Keep ’em coming.

  1. Do You Feel Better? (5:05)
  2. Sovereignty Blues (3:50)
  3. The Dream That Took Me Over (4:40)
  4. Snollygoster Goon (3:16)

Released by: InGrooves / Label Logic
Release date: January 8, 2021
Total running time: 16:48

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10cc 1976 2020 Artists (by group or surname) Azimuth Barclay James Harvest Blue Mink Emotions Hamilton Jefferson Starship Joe Frank & Reynolds Liverpool Express Music Reviews Steve Miller Band Year

Bob Stanley presents ’76 In The Shade

4 min read

Order this CDWhat with the pandemic and all, the 2020s, as decades go, have been one hell of a long century. One of the things I’ve sought refuge in has been music. Soundtracks, of course, but also rolling back the clock and reacquainting myself with old favorites like Parliament (of which more later), and somehow, an Amazon search brought me to this compilation, curated by Bob Stanley of Saint Etienne. It’s not the only such compilation that’s been assembled by one or more members of Saint Etienne, but if they’re all as good as this one, that’s a collection I need to expand upon, because ’76 In The Shade is nothing short of amazing.

As the well-written liner notes point out, Stanley is trying to recreate what was being heard in England’s sweltering summer of 1976. But that doesn’t mean just what was on the radio. It means what random instrumentals were being played under the BBC’s pre-sign-on TV test cards in the morning. It means what pieces of production music were heard under other things, be they commercials or radio interstitials. And then, yes, there’s also what was on the radio, but even here, Stanley reaches deep into the playlists he remembers and rescues some true gems from undeserved obscurity, so while there are a few well-worn radio staples here – 10cc’s “I’m Mandy, Fly Me”, Jefferson Starship’s “Miracles”, Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds’ “Fallin In’ Love” – there is much here that has either been forgotten, or just seemed new to my ears on this side of the Atlantic.

The most obvious quality of all of it, aside from being really good music, is that it’s so mellow. This compilation is so laid-back that the hardest-rocking thing to be found is a Cliff Richard song (!), but even that selection is so sweetened by its production that it fits alongside the rest of the album without seeming jarring.

Some of the real gems are the instrumental tracks, many of them from production music library LPs that would’ve been in circulation at radio and television stations at the time. On the non-instrumental side, there are gems like the Motown-style “You’re The Song (That I Can’t Stop singing)”, credited to Hollywood Freeway although it was basically the songwriter’s demo of his new song. It was later covered by Frankie Valli, though I find myself preferring what turns out to be the original version of the song with its lush instrumentation and falsetto vocals. Other tracks by Liverpool Express, Sylvia, and Blue Mink make it seem like their producers had only just discovered reverb and were determined to drench these entire songs in reverb. It’s not unpleasant, but boy, are the results sometimes a bit on the trippy side.

4 out of 4Some of the songs here I remember from my childhood, and the rest I’m delighted to make their acquaintance here. Various artist collections are sometimes a bit of a crap shoot, engaged in a tug-of-war between what the issuing label can afford to license from other labels, or for that matter what’s even available at the time the compilation is assembled. But ’76 In The Shade is remarkably well-curated, and since I discovered it in 2021, it has gotten a lot of repeat listening time over these past couple of sweltering 21st century summers. It’s a nicely selected, relaxing album that, even though it contains only a handful of songs I recognized from my childhood, managed to take me back to that time.

  1. Walking So Free – Spike Janson (3:33)
  2. Sugar Shuffle – Lynsey De Paul (4:00)
  3. Miracles (Single Version) – Jefferson Starship (3:29)
  4. Get Out Of Town – Smokey Robinson (4:49)
  5. I’m Mandy, Fly Me (Album Version) – 10cc (5:20)
  6. Stoned Out – Simon Park (2:17)
  7. Nothing To Remind Me – Cliff Richard (2:59)
  8. Discover Me – David Ruffin (4:12)
  9. You’re The Song (That I Can’t Stop Singing) – Hollywood Freeway (3:10)
  10. You Are My Love – Liverpool Express (3:15)
  11. Liquid Sunshine – John Cameron (3:00)
  12. Not On The Outside – Sylvia (3:03)
  13. Stay With Me – Blue Mink (3:17)
  14. Wild Mountain Honey – Steve Miller Band (4:50)
  15. Fallin’ In Love – Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds (3:12)
  16. Flowers – The Emotions (4:28)
  17. Montreal City – Azimuth (3:18)
  18. Rock ‘n’ Roll Star – Barclay James Harvest (5:18)
  19. Miss My Love Today – Gilbert O’Sullivan (3:46)
  20. Music – Carmen McRae (3:29)

Released by: Ace Records
Release date: August 11, 2020
Total running time: 74:45

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2020 Artists (by group or surname) L Lickerish Quartet Non-Soundtrack Music Year

The Lickerish Quartet – Threesome, Vol. 1

4 min read

Order this CDLickerish Quartet is a collision of former members of Jellyfish and/or offshoots of Jellyfish, two categories you’ll often find in the same record collection. Jellyfish lasted long enough for two albums; a posthumous box set of live cuts, demos, and collaborations rounded out the band’s legacy, but still left a lot of potential on the table. Many a Jellyfish fan (like the scruffy fellow I occasionally spy in mirrors and other reflective surfaces) obsessively follows the individual former members of the group through their solo careers and later work with other artists – and sometimes minor family reunions like this one. With Jellyfish founding member Roger Manning and Spilt Milk-members (and former Umajets) Tim Smith and Eric Dover aboard, Lickerish Quartet is indeed something of a family reunion. The plan is for the band to gradually write, record, and release a series of EPs, each supported by fan pre-orders, so that the end result will be about an album’s worth of music.

Threesome Vol. 1 is the first of those, with the “threesome” in the title describing the band; “quartet” is actually a better description of the number of songs on this first volume, somewhat confusingly. But that’s the kind of perversely anarchic humor that we’re expecting from Jellyfish alumni, right?

That sense of humor also extends into the first song, “Fadoodle”, whose lyrics can best be summed up as “I cleaned house and did some chores, can I get laid now?” (Pro tip: guys…you should be doing your share of the housework because it’s part of the unspoken social contract of sharing space with other human beings, not because you’re expecting sex at the end of said chore.) Maybe I’m just showing my age here, but these lyrics and their dancing-between-sung-and-spoken-word delivery didn’t land with me, even though the music itself is fine; there’s a great bass line that makes it all incredibly catchy, and the instrumental bridge may be the best thing about the song.

“Bluebird’s Blues” is a definite improvement, and perhaps should’ve been first song (though I do get it, if you’re banking on the Jellyfish connection, “Fadoodle” sounds more whimsical and Jellyfish-esque than anything else here). Together with “There Is A Number”, “Bluebird’s Blues” really digs into that ’70s power-pop sound, which is really what I hope to hear out of a reunion of any configuration of Jellyfish, a lot more than I hope to hear whimsy. They’re both excellent songs, though I get a chuckle out of the first lyric in “There Is A Number”: “I never meant to cause you too much pain.” Is there really some acceptable amount of pain one can cause others before a line is crossed? (As with the playful lyrics of “Fadoodle”, I’m probably overthinking it here.)

“Lighthouse Spaceship” was the song most heavily promoted prior to the EP’s release, and with good reason: where “Bluebird’s Blues” and “There Is A Number” are classic bittersweet ballads, “Lighthouse Spaceship” is a straight-up, unapologetic rocker that reaches for – and just about achieves – a late ’60s/early ’70s psychedelic rock flavor with both its lyrics and its 3 out of 4instrumentation. At over six minutes, I get why this wasn’t the lead track, but it seems obvious that the band realized this was the strongest thing in this particular track listing.

It’s all worth a listen, and perhaps best of all is the promise that more from this lineup – and perhaps even better material – is yet to come.

  1. Fadoodle (3:46)
  2. Bluebird’s Blues (4:31)
  3. There Is A Magic Number (4:14)
  4. Lighthouse Spaceship (6:26)

Released by: InGrooves / Label Logic
Release date: May 15, 2020
Total running time: 18:57

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2015 E ELO Jeff Lynne L Non-Soundtrack Music

Jeff Lynne’s ELO – Alone In The Universe

Alone In The Universe15 years after his last album that took 15 years to arrive, Jeff Lynne is back, once again operating under the ELO banner, with an album that straddles his own tendencies toward classic rock and the trademark sound that his fans all but demand anytime he surfaces.

It’s not as if he’s been completely dormant during this time: an album of re-recorded-all-by-himself ELO covers, some of them fairly close to the sound of the originals, as well as an album of rock covers of classic hits and standards, done in Lynne’s trademark style. Armchair Theatre, his 1990 solo album, was reissued with bonus tracks. He’s also been producing albums for the likes of Joe Walsh and Bryan Adams, so it’s not as if he and his sound have gone completely underground.

But what has been missing is Jeff Lynne, writing new songs and performing and producing them himself. Long Wave and Mr. Blue Sky, nice as they were, were covers albums. Alone In The Universe is what Lynne/ELO fans have really been waiting for: new music from that familiar, laid-back voice. “When I Was A Boy” opens the album with languid nostalgia, perhaps as autobiographical a song as we’re ever likely to hear from Lynne, chronicling his childhood love of music that led to a life of writing and performing. There are hints of strings, all synthesized/sampled, though they’re kept far enough in the background that it doesn’t break the song.

“Love And Rain” picks up the tempo with a guitar groove reminiscent of “Showdown”‘s clavinet, while “Dirty To The Bone” bestows a cheerful sound upon some surprisingly biting (and occasionally silly) lyrics. What follows next is a one-two punch of two of the album’s best numbers, the mesmerizing “When The Night Comes” and the strangely relaxing and uplifting “The Sun Will Shine”. “When The Night Comes” takes some tried-and-true elements, such as a chorus that owes more than a little bit to the chorus of the Traveling Wilburys’ “Not Alone Any More”, and sets them to a beat that’s as close to reggae as Lynne’s ever likely to stray. “The Sun Will Shine” is a gently uplifting song with some of Lynne’s best lyrics in ages, with a soothing synth-and-guitar wash in the background. (In the electronic press kit interview for the album, Lynne says he wrote it to help a friend who was depressed; I can tell you that it does work in cheering up someone in dire straits.) “Ain’t It A Drag” is a delightfully cheery song about karma catching up with someone who’s done you wrong, while “All My Life” is a more plaintive, idealized love song, but a very pretty one.

“I’m Leaving You” sees Lynne going for the full Orbison, which is a gutsy thing to do because, as Bruce Springsteen himself once said, no one can sing like Roy Orbison. Still, this is a better approximation than most could manage. “One Step At A Time”, added at a late stage out of concern that the album didn’t have enough upbeat tracks, is a curious mix of a driving rhythm that wouldn’t have been out of place on Discovery, slathered with languid slide guitar that is simultaneously at odds with that rhythm and yet fits over it nicely. (And, for the first time in many years, it’s an ELO song with more cowbell!)

“Alone In The Universe” brings the album to a close in its intended configuration, Lynne’s ode to – of all things – space probe Voyager 1, outbound from the edge of the solar system, and it turns out to be the most ELO-ish song of the entire album, in both subject matter and presentation. Where Zoom might’ve left some fans thinking that it was an ELO album in name only, this album’s title track demonstrates that ELO is back in more than name only, even if it’s just Jeff Lynne in his studio. The sound of ELO is back as well.

Various deluxe versions of the album somewhat jarringly add anywhere from two to three extra songs after that perfect closure, from the country-rock of “Fault Line” (probably inspired by Lynne’s proximity to San Andreas), “Blue” (an addictively Wilbury-ish number), and the very ’80s-ish “On My Mind” (whose production touches include helicopters flying overhead for some reason).

4 out of 4Assembled as a musical package, Alone In The Universe is almost everything I’ve missed about ELO, tied up with a bow – this is why I still get excited to hear about Jeff Lynne heading into a studio, and why I hope he doesn’t keep taking off 15 years between albums.

Order this CD

  1. When I Was A Boy (3:12)
  2. Love And Rain (3:30)
  3. Dirty To The Bone (3:06)
  4. When The Night Comes (3:22)
  5. The Sun Will Shine On You (3:30)
  6. Ain’t It A Drag (2:36)
  7. All My Life (2:51)
  8. I’m Leaving You (3:08)
  9. One Step At A Time (3:21)
  10. Alone In The Universe (3:55)

    Bonus Tracks

  11. Fault Line (2:07)
  12. Blue (2:36)
  13. On My Mind (3:09)

Released by: Columbia
Release date: November 13, 2015
Total running time: 32:23 (standard edition/LP), 37:06 (deluxe CD/download), 40:23 (Japanese Blu-Spec CD)

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2009 Artists (by group or surname) L Little Boots Non-Soundtrack Music

Little Boots – Hands

This might seem a bit “young” for my usual tastes, but Little Boots is an interesting act with a sound that makes it clear that someone – whether it’s the artist or her producer(s) – has a fixation on an ’80s-style sound that I used to know as “new wave.” (These days I think they call it electropop; I missed the memo when this change happened.) This sound has won Little Boots a consistent showing in the charts in the UK and Europe over the past several months, and it’s a sound that’s usually backed up by some pretty catchy songwriting.

And how much credibility does Little Boots have with the (formerly) new wave crowd? Enough that her debut album features a duet with Human League frontman Philip Oakey – if that’s not an old-school new wave stamp of approval, then I’m not sure there is one. It’s also one of the highlights of the entire album, but not the only one by far. The dance-ready single “Remedy” is slightly more modern, but still puts wavering, wobbly ’80s analog-style synths front and center in the mix. “Stuck On Repeat” also smacks of a strong ’80s new wave influence, with a pulsating, repeating synth behind the entire song. It’s meant to be dance music, of course, but it stands up quite well musically.

3 out of 4“Symmetry” and “Stuck On Repeat” are just two of the standouts; others include “Earthquake”, “Click” and “Hearts Collide”. The first single, “New In Town”, doesn’t strike me as having the staying power of some of the above, but it was popular enough in the UK. At any rate, enough of Hands is strong enough that Little Boots is an act that merits watching in the future.

Order this CD

  1. New In Town (3:19)
  2. Earthquake (4:04)
  3. Stuck On Repeat (3:21)
  4. Click (3:16)
  5. Remedy (3:19)
  6. Meddle (3:16)
  7. Ghost (3:02)
  8. Mathematics (3:25)
  9. Symmetry (4:30)
  10. Discuss it!Tune Into My Heart (3:41)
  11. Hearts Collide (3:45)
  12. No Brakes (4:01)

Released by: Atlantic
Release date: 2009
Total running time: 42:59

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1998 L Non-Soundtrack Music W

Who’s Serious: The Symphonic Music of the Who

Who's Serious: The Symphonic Music of the Who It’s been a concept as old as the music industry itself. Whenever you need to need to squeeze out a few more dollars from a songwriter’s catalog of hits, simply hire an in-house orchestra to record those same songs in a more “classical” setting. It started with 101 Strings in 1957, and continues to this day with the “String Tribute To…” albums that seem to get churned out more and more each week. But what if the orchestra that offers the tribute is worthy of tribute themselves?

Who’s Serious is one item from a line of rock-meets-symphony albums by the London Philharmonic Orchestra (Jimi Hendrix, Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, etc.), with The Who being the band toasted. But just one listen and you can tell that this is a cut above your average “tribute” album. The album kicks off with “Overture”, a medley of Who hits performed by Roger Daltrey’s touring band. The next track starts the album off proper, with “I Can See For Miles” being performed by the Orchestra. They continue with a string (sorry, bad pun) of The Who’s songs until the last track, “Listening To You,” is again recorded by Roger Daltrey’s band.

One thing I noticed while listening to the album: the arrangements are top-notch. The melody, in particular, captures Roger Daltrey’s inflections perfectly (for example, the “hiccup” on “Who Are You”). But there are still some qualms present. First, only a handful of The Who’s most well-known songs were chosen, meaning that this probably won’t appeal to casual Who fans. Who purists, on the other hand, may also find fault with the fact that the Orchestra may have taken liberties with the arrangements (“Baba O’Riley”, for instance, repeats the first verse and chorus before going into the second verse). Thirdly, even though Roger Daltrey’s touring band performs on the bookends of the album, there is little mention of them in the liner notes besides listing each member of “The Band”. Maybe it’s just because I obessively catalog my music collection, but I would have prefered a little more than that to go on. And lastly, despite all the good intentions and professionalism Rating - 3 out of 4brought to this project, one gets the feeling that the only reason this came about was to, yes, line someone’s coffers.

It probably goes without saying that if you’re new to The Who, then you should pick up the original recordings first. But for Who fans looking for a new twist on some old favorites, this may well be the album for you.

Order this CD

  1. Overture(6:18)
  2. I Can See For Miles(3:21)
  3. Pinball Wizard / See Me, Feel Me(5:13)
  4. My Generation(5:51)
  5. Dr. Jimmy(12:30)
  6. Baba O’Riley(5:34)
  7. 5:15(7:44)
  8. Love Reign O’er Me(6:41)
  9. Who Are You(4:37)
  10. Listening To You (from We’re Not Going To Take It)(4:48)

Released by: BMG
Release date: 1998
Total running time: 63:03

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2006 L L.E.O. Non-Soundtrack Music

L.E.O. – Alpacas Orgling

LEO - Alpacas OrglingThe idea behind the L.E.O. sessions were simple – indie pop artist Bleu Macauley and friends, acquaintances and colleagues from across North America would combine their talents, often by long distance, to create a tribute to the style, if not necessarily specific songs, of Jeff Lynne and ELO. Aside from Blue, just a few of the artists involved include Andy Sturmer (formerly of Jellyfish), the Hanson brothers (yes, those Hanson brothers), and quite a few others who have cut their teeth on the indie-label power pop circuit. And right from the first full song, it’s clear that the L.E.O. collective is settling for nothing less than an homage to ELO’s glory years – the period stretching from Face The Music through Out Of The Blue.

If that’s the sound you’re looking for, it’s nicely approximated in such tracks as “Distracted,” “Sukaz Are Born Every Minute,” and “Goodbye Innocence.” Fans of ELO’s funkier, less lush numbers will like “Make Me” and espeically “Ya Had Me Goin'”, which kicks off with an intro strongly reminiscent of “Evil Woman.” Even Lynne’s post-ELO, retro-rockabilly solo style is represented in one of the better songs, “Private Line.” Most of the songs here are winners, though there’s a “bonus track” (not quite 2 minutes of music at the end of a mostly empty, half-hour-long track) that’s basically an abbreviated version of “Don’t Bring Me Down” that smacks more of being a spoof than an homage. The album’s just a little bit short (for the total running time below, I deleted the long empty 4 out of 4stretch of the bonus track so you can tell how much actual music there is), but there’s a great deal of promise here – enough to make me wonder if a follow-up is planned. This “group” – term loosely used – has successfully captured a style that’s not explored much these days, though the question is really whether or not enough people will take them up on the offer to make it worth the artists’ or the labels’ time. If you ever enjoyed the ELO sound, this album is definitely worth yours.

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  1. Overture (0:33)
  2. Goodbye Innocence (3:51)
  3. Ya Had Me Goin’ (3:10)
  4. Distracted (4:18)
  5. Make Me (3:00)
  6. The Ol’ College Try (3:43)
  7. Nothin’ Will Ever Change (4:12)
  8. Don’t Let It Go (3:24)
  9. Private Line (3:12)
  10. Sukaz Are Born Every Minute (4:18)
  11. Don’t Bring Me Down (1:55)

Released by: Cheap Lullaby Records
Release date: 2006
Total running time: 35:36

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1979 L Lenny and the Squigtones Non-Soundtrack Music

Lenny & Squiggy present Lenny and the Squigtones

Lenny & Squiggy present Lenny and the SquigtonesBefore A Mighty Wind, before This Is Spinal Tap, there was Lenny and the Squigtones.

Michael McKean and David Lander first created the characters of Lenny & Squiggy (then known as Lenny & Ant’ny) while members of the comedy troupe The Credibility Gap. When they were hired as writers for the Happy Days spin-off Laverne & Shirley (along with fellow Gap member Harry Shearer) they lobbied for their creations to be included as recurring characters.

After the show had gained success, an album was released, Laverne & Shirley Sing, featuring Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams performing in character. It sold well enough to justify a follow-up featuring the show’s other duo. On the show Lenny and Squiggy had often been shown performing with their band Lenny and the Squigtones, so an album by the erstwhile greasers actually made more sense than one by two bottling plant employees. Lenny & Squiggy present Lenny and the Squigtones is presented in the form of a concert and was, in fact, recorded live at the Roxy in Los Angeles. McKean and Lander stay in character throughout. The only thing that breaks the fourth wall is a joke that revolves around the “Happy Days gang” and a musical version of “In Cold Blood”.

The comedy shows an edge to the characters that is, no doubt, more in line with the original Credibility Gap version than the tamer presentation seen on Laverne & Shirley. The between-song sketches are perfectly tailored to the actors and they never fail to milk the most out of the jokes.

The music is also top-notch, expertly capturing an authentic 1950’s feel. Like the music in This Is Spinal Tap and A Mighty Wind, the songs never make fun of the style, but have fun with it. And in an interesting connection to Spinal Tap (the one that lands this in the Tap canon), Christopher Guest plays guitar for the band and is credited in the liner notes as Nigel Tufnel. His guitar work is actually noticeable, most clearly on “Foreign Legion Of Love”, which bears distinct similarities to Spinal Tap’s “Stonehenge” and “Clam Caravan”.

4 out of 4Run, don’t walk, to your favorite record store to get Lenny & Squiggy present Lenny and the Squigtones. Then walk quietly home when you realize it’s long out of print, extremely difficult to find and darn expensive if you do. But by whatever means you employ, you must find this album. No fan of the Spinal Tap genre of recordings should be without it.

Order this CD

  1. Vamp On* (:50)
  2. Night After Night (2:30)
  3. Creature Without A Head (3:49)
  4. King Of The Cars (2:11)
  5. Squiggy’s Wedding Day (5:55)
  6. Love Is A Terrible Thing (2:52)
  7. Babyland* (For Eva Squigman) (3:16)
  8. (If Only I Had Listened To) Mama (2:10)
  9. So’s Your Old Testament* (1:29)
  10. Sister-In-Law (3:05)
  11. Honor Farm* (2:08)
  12. Starcrossed (2:59)
  13. Only Women Cry* (1:30)
  14. Foreign Legion of Love (4:20)
  15. Vamp Off* (:36)
    note: tracks with a (*) are spoken word tracks

Released by: Casablanca
Release date: 1979
Total running time: 39:40

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2004 L Levinhurst Non-Soundtrack Music

Levinhurst – Perfect Life

Levinhurst - Perfect LifeAn interestingly retro effort, Perfect Life is a bit of a manifesto for Levinhurst: it aims to bring some ’80s new wave feel back into the present with the help of some modern technology. And Levinhurst does carry the necessary pedigree to accomplish this; leading the trio is Lol Tolhurst, founding member of The Cure, with Cindy Levinson handling vocals and Dayton Borders providing some synth and sequencer wizardry.

If I have a gripe with Levinhurst’s debut effort, it lies more with the track sequencing than anything. Kicking off with a brief, atmospheric instrumental, the album really doesn’t properly start until the percolating intro of “Let’s Go” hits, and while it’s a decent song, it’s very repetitive lyrically, and even those lyrics are pretty lightweight compared to many of the other songs; thematically, I understand why “Let’s Go” is where it is, as an invitation to the rest of the album, but it’s one of the album’s weaker songs, so it really undermines that point. “Sorrow” hits next, and it’s immediately clear when I hear it that this should’ve been the lead track (and the lead single, but I’ll return to that point later). It sweeps into a dark, electronic rhythm worthy of early Eurythmics or Depeche Mode, with Levinson providing some of the best vocals on the whole disc. This song is actually what tipped me off to Levinhurst in the first place (when I heard it on Free Zone on WICR, Indianapolis – just a wee plug there).

The excellent vocals and interesting approach to instrumentation carries over into “Sadman”, another excellent track, and “Lost” is a delightful track that has, compositionally speaking, what I’d describe as musical red herrings – the chord and melodic progressions sometimes lead you to places where you would’ve had no reasonable expectation of the song going. Maybe that’s an example of writing stuff cleverly that only other songwriters would pick up on, or maybe it’s an example of writing in that distinctive let’s-break-the-rules-of-how-this-is-done style of the ’80s, but it’s a neat track all the same. A brief instrumental, “Insomniac”, follows, and it smacks just a little bit of early Depeche Mode, and after that comes the perky, swirling, begs-to-be-danced-to “Despair” – seems like a bit of a contradiction, doesn’t it?

The lead single for Perfect Life is “Hope”, and “Hope” is a decent song, but it’s somehow not as catchy as “Sorrow” or even “Let’s Go”; all I can figure is that the band (or the label) wanted something with an upbeat mood coming out of the starting gate. If they wanted something that sounded “up,” even the last song, “More / Mad”, would’ve fit the bill. After checking the credits in the CD booklet, I wonder if I wasn’t picking up on something else: “Hope” alone was recorded in a different studio and put together by a different producer. Something about it is a little “noisier” than some of the other tracks, with heavy distortion 3 out of 4introduced on some of the synth parts, and it just doesn’t seem entirely representative of the sound established on the rest of the album.

Perfect Life may not be a perfect album, but it does show great promise for Levinhurst. Hopefully they’ll get a chance to follow up on it.

Order this CD

  1. Vinti (1:13)
  2. Let’s Go (3:40)
  3. Sorrow (3:30)
  4. Sadman (5:41)
  5. Lost (4:14)
  6. Insomniac (1:33)
  7. Despair (3:48)
  8. Hope (3:03)
  9. Behind Me (4:09)
  10. Perfect Life (1:31)
  11. More / Mad (7:06)

Released by: Full Contact
Release date: 2004
Total running time: 39:30

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Categories
1997 John Lennon L Non-Soundtrack Music

Lennon Legend: The Very Best Of John Lennon

John Lennon - Lennon Legend: The Very Best Of John LennonIf George Harrison is my favorite Beatle, who’s number two? If I’m to be honest, I can’t choose between Paul McCartney and John Lennon. Each has his own strenghts: McCartney is unequaled when it comes to ballads and beguiling melodies, but if I want something more akin to straight-ahead rock ‘n’ roll, I’ve got to go with John. Sometime back, I traded in my copy of Double Fantasy and got Lennon Legend instead, and it was definitely a trade up, eliminating the need to skip every other track. I’m not one of these Beatles fanboys who rants endlessly about Yoko Ono breaking up the band, I just don’t like her voice or her music on their own merits. Lennon Legend alleviates the elaborate CD player programming required to skip Yoko’s stuff, since it’s all of John’s best. Still my all-time favorite Lennon tune is one of my personal theme songs from the soundtrack of my life, “Watching The Wheels”, though “Nobody Told Me” runs a close second in favorites from John’s post-Beatles repertoire. He occasionally gets a little bit out there (“#9 Dream”, anyone?), but he’s still got his rock ‘n’ roll chops with “(Just Like) Starting Over” and even gives McCartney a run for his balladeer money with “Woman”. And overplayed as it is, and as frequently misread from a lyrical standpoint as it is, I still have to admit that it’s hard to beat “Imagine” or “Jealous Guy” (I’ve always been a huge fan of the latter especially).

So is there any Lennon that I don’t like? Believe it or not, I skip “Give Peace A Chance” almost every time I put this disc in the player. Nor am I partial to “Whatever Gets You Through The Night”, but I can still listen to it; to this day I’m convinced that “Peace” is forever included in Lennon’s best-of collections more for its historical curiosity value, and its association with the man and his views, than for its musical worth. Great sentiment, perhaps a decent song…not the best performance, though.

Still, a solid collection on which you’re almost certain to find something that you liked back in the days when it was getting steady radio airplay (perhaps even before Lennon’s death, if you’re as old as I am or older), and maybe something new to like as well.

As critical as I am of Double Fantasy, by the way, it does have its value musically. Once, a couple of jobs ago, I was trying to bring something to my boss’ attention but he was busy schmoozing on a seemingly 4 out of 4endless network conference call. So, before leaving the second floor to go about my business, I calmly reversed my CD track programming to play only the Yoko Ono tracks on Double Fantasy, cranked the office stereo, and quietly walked downstairs. I can still hear the anguished shouts and screams from the second floor to this day.

Order this CD

  1. Imagine (3:04)
  2. Instant Karma! (3:21)
  3. Mother (3:56)
  4. Jealous Guy (4:16)
  5. Power To The People (3:20)
  6. Cold Turkey (5:01)
  7. Love (3:24)
  8. Mind Games (4:14)
  9. Whatever Gets You Through The Night (3:21)
  10. #9 Dream (4:48)
  11. Stand By Me (3:29)
  12. (Just Like) Starting Over (3:56)
  13. Woman (3:28)
  14. Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy) (4:02)
  15. Watching The Wheels (3:33)
  16. Nobody Told Me (3:35)
  17. Borrowed Time (4:31)
  18. Working Class Hero (3:52)
  19. Happy Xmas (War Is Over) (3:35)
  20. Give Peace A Chance (4:52)

Released by: EMI/Parlophone
Release date: 1997
Total running time: 77:38

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